Fall is like Mother Nature’s friendly way to ease us in to cold-weather dressing. Instead of hopping straight to wool and cashmere, fall is for playing around with light cotton sweatshirts and open-knit sweaters. Instead of bundling up right away in our warmest beanies, we can experiment with wide-brim hats, paperboy caps and cute berets. And instead of immediately covering every inch of exposed skin with a giant blanket scarf, we can break out the neckscarves and skinny scarves while the temps are still mild.

It’s also the perfect time to incorporate one of our favorite pieces: the cropped jacket. These styles say, “Hey, cold weather, we see you coming, but we’ve still got time to play it cool.” They’re practical enough to protect us from the fall chill, but not as serious as our long wool coats or as cumbersome as our go-to winter puffers. Not to mention, when paired with a high-waisted jean or trouser, these cropped silhouettes create a universally flattering look we can’t seem to get enough of.

Click on to shop some cropped jackets that are sure to complete all of your fall looks. With these guys, we’re taking advantage of this in-between season for as long as we possibly can.